Serenity Falls(88)

“He’s amazing.”

“You must be very special to him to do all this for you.”

“I’m beginning to think I am. Don’t get me wrong. I know he loves me, because he proves it every single second of every single day.”

“And you do the same for him?” she asks. There’s no hint of skepticism in her tone, just genuine curiosity.

“I hope so. I know when I was in high school, I said I ‘loved’ Jarred, and in a way, I did, but not like I love Wes. With us, it’s fun, never boring. He is so romantic, and we don’t fight. It’s just…”

“Easy,” she replies, finishing my sentence.

“Exactly,” I exclaim with a smile.

Reaching over, my aunt takes my hand in hers. “You know, you remind me so much of your mother. Not just by your beauty, either. You have so many of her qualities, Kenleigh. You’re honest, sweet, sincere—genuine. I can see why Wes has fallen in love with you. How could he not?”

Damn it. I am so sick of crying. The sting of tears pricks the backs of my eyes. With a couple of deep breaths, I will them away. If there is anyone in this world I would want to be like, my mother would be it. “Thank you,” I barely whisper around the ball of emotion in my throat.

“Now, tell me about school. How was your freshman year?”

“It was… different that’s for sure.”

“You mean, it wasn’t full of parties, drunken nights, and sex,” she says playfully.

I laugh at her description of college life. “Actually, it was all that, and so much more,” I tease.

“Well, at least you’re experiencing college the right way.”

This right here is what I miss. My aunt and I can joke around about this type of stuff and it’s never taken out of context. We’ve always had an open and honest relationship. She’s known the few times I’ve drank before. She also knows that I’ve never done drugs. Now, telling her about when I lost my virginity? That was a little difficult, but she was glad that I was honest and upfront with her. After I began to deal with my depression in a healthy way, we sat down and had a long talk. My aunt informed me about how worried she had been, and told me that if I ever needed to talk, she would always be there for me. And she has been every step of the way.

“Have you decided on a major yet?”

A blast of cool air hits my feet when the nail technician pulls my foot out of the warm water, and places it on the padded end of the ceramic basin. “I think so. I’ve been asked that a couple of times this summer, and every time, I’ve said I think I’m gonna do nursing.”

“That’s great. I always knew you were gonna make something of yourself. You know, really go places with your life.”

I peek over at my aunt as her nail tech massages her feet and calves. “I know it’s going to be tough, but I know I can do it.”

She nods. “There will be lots of late night studying.”

“Yeah. But I think the whole nursing thing will be a good fit for me.”

“Agreed. You’ve always enjoyed helping other people.”

“And I have you to thank for that,” I reply. If it hadn’t been for her, there is no telling where or how I would have ended up. My dad was an only child, and his parents passed before I was born. My mom’s parents died when I was four. The memories I have of them is vague, but I know I loved them. With my aunt being my only surviving relative, if she hadn’t stepped in and agreed to take over as my guardian, I would have been given to the state.

“Why do you say that?” Her face is marred with confusion as she looks at me.

“You’re all the family I have left. Without you, who knows where or what I would be.” I keep my eyes trained forward. I don’t want my aunt to see the fear behind them, the fear of not knowing what might have happened to me.

“Kenleigh? Look at me, please?” Her tone is soft and it pulls at my heart.

I do as she asks. My blue irises find her light green ones, and it’s as if I’m having a conversation with my mom. “You’ve had a hard life. Unfortunately, that hard life was introduced to you at way too young an age.” Her eyes turn glossy from unshed tears as she continues. “But that’s life. You lost your parents. I lost my sister and best friend, but at least I had you. We all go through ups and downs. Some are worse than others, but it’s what you make of it. You can let life beat you down or you can stand up to it.” She takes a deep shuddering breath. “Your mom and dad would be so proud of the woman you have become… are becoming. You’ve taken a horrible tragedy and turned it into a positive. I can tell you, when I was in college, my last thought would have been to contribute my time to a horse ranch. To helping kids with disabilities or issues of their own. But not you. You’re so strong and giving. It doesn’t matter if I wouldn’t have been there for you. You would have become this person, regardless. It’s who you are. Who you have always been.”